I have been wondering the same thing. I started raising Button Quail. I have been told parakeet bands work on them.. I dont know what size that they are.

Some people say that finch and canary bands would work to. They seem a bit small to me. So I havent even tried those.

Sure hope some other BYC folks can help us out on that one. I would like to expand my flock. But Im affraid to let it get to big cause it will be harder to keep track of who is who and who are related.

I still cannot get over how pricey leg bands are... wanna know what I use and used to use and would use again but with care?

I used small colored zipties (or oplaque zipties with individual numbers)-- the only risky part is if you put them ona young bird you HAVE to watch them as they grow and keep the area big enough that if the birds leg is growing too fast taht you can snip it off....I almost hurt a quail because of a ziptie being too tight.

What i use now is simple....I buy cuttle bones from walmart for 95 cents, it's a calcium suppliment. In each box comes a bendable peice of metal to grasp onto the cuttlebone and to the side of bars of a cage...I dont use them for the cuttle bone (as I grind the cuttle bone up) I just take a pair of scissors and snip off a part of the sheet metal peice and bend it over the quails leg and wala ...Legband.

I use these to mark my males:

***Buy very bendable sheet metal or aluminum and cut it to shape and just bend it around and same thing****!

If you had an etching pen thing you could easily etch a number or code or name into it before hand as well I'd think

edited to add: Tibetans are not a breed of quail. Its a color of coturnix quail. Just like you wouldn't say "collars for Labradors, Chocolate labs, and Yorkies" LOL. Not making fun of you at all just giving an example of what that would sound like with dog breeds to make my explaination understandable

I still cannot get over how pricey leg bands are... wanna know what I use and used to use and would use again but with care?

I used small colored zipties (or oplaque zipties with individual numbers)-- the only risky part is if you put them ona young bird you HAVE to watch them as they grow and keep the area big enough that if the birds leg is growing too fast taht you can snip it off....I almost hurt a quail because of a ziptie being too tight.

What i use now is simple....I buy cuttle bones from walmart for 95 cents, it's a calcium suppliment. In each box comes a bendable peice of metal to grasp onto the cuttlebone and to the side of bars of a cage...I dont use them for the cuttle bone (as I grind the cuttle bone up) I just take a pair of scissors and snip off a part of the sheet metal peice and bend it over the quails leg and wala ...Legband.

***Buy very bendable sheet metal or aluminum and cut it to shape and just bend it around and same thing****!

If you had an etching pen thing you could easily etch a number or code or name into it before hand as well I'd think

edited to add: Tibetans are not a breed of quail. Its a color of coturnix quail. Just like you wouldn't say "collars for Labradors, Chocolate labs, and Yorkies" LOL. Not making fun of you at all just giving an example of what that would sound like with dog breeds to make my explaination understandable

I have never thought about using that for bands and much of those i have thrown away

that's very smart thinking Niki! i am gonna do that for now on because i wanted to start putting bands on my birds on the males like your so i will no off the back who is who with out having to redo things. thanks

Edited by BirdBoy88 - 1/11/09 at 5:14pm

MarkHere to make you smileG~J~M~L -I have to many pets to count!Eggs - Eggs - Eggs!

I still cannot get over how pricey leg bands are... wanna know what I use and used to use and would use again but with care?

I used small colored zipties (or oplaque zipties with individual numbers)-- the only risky part is if you put them ona young bird you HAVE to watch them as they grow and keep the area big enough that if the birds leg is growing too fast taht you can snip it off....I almost hurt a quail because of a ziptie being too tight.

What i use now is simple....I buy cuttle bones from walmart for 95 cents, it's a calcium suppliment. In each box comes a bendable peice of metal to grasp onto the cuttlebone and to the side of bars of a cage...I dont use them for the cuttle bone (as I grind the cuttle bone up) I just take a pair of scissors and snip off a part of the sheet metal peice and bend it over the quails leg and wala ...Legband.

***Buy very bendable sheet metal or aluminum and cut it to shape and just bend it around and same thing****!

If you had an etching pen thing you could easily etch a number or code or name into it before hand as well I'd think

edited to add: Tibetans are not a breed of quail. Its a color of coturnix quail. Just like you wouldn't say "collars for Labradors, Chocolate labs, and Yorkies" LOL. Not making fun of you at all just giving an example of what that would sound like with dog breeds to make my explaination understandable

I have never thought about using that for bands and much of those i have thrown away

that's very smart thinking Niki! i am gonna do that for now on because i wanted to start putting bands on my birds on the males like your so i will no off the back who is who with out having to redo things. thanks

Yeah that's what I always did was threw them away, never had a use for them...dont know what made me think of it but they work great and so far have stayed on every male i've put them on (With no complications) the metal is so flexable that im betting if theres any suprising growth that as long as the metal isnt too taught together, the birds flesh can just push away the metal to make room. Instead of cutting into the poor birds leg.